Cliff Galbraith — Interview With The Bastardby Katherine KellerI first met Cliff Galbraith at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. I found him abrasive, obnoxious, funny, and very intelligent. Speaking with him at the Expo/SPX only reinforced this opinion. He doesn't give a rat's ass if you find him offensive; he only cares about making his comic, Rat Bastard, the best it can be. 1. Are you the sort of man your parents hoped you would be? Not at all — tattooed and purple hair, terminally single, still going to punk rock shows at the age of 40, sleeping till noon and going out almost every night — my parents are like most parents, they wanted a "well adjusted" son with a conventional lifestyle, not a comic convention lifestyle. 2. You are one sick and twisted person. Who or what is to praise? Maybe twisted, but not that sick I hope. By praise you mean who are my heroes? Not many people walking around today, I think the original astronauts were the last "Great American Heroes" and their like will not be seen again — only in terms of public figures, there's plenty of people who do unselfish deeds and acts of bravery, but I think we're talking about national hero stuff. I like Bill Bradley's ideas, he's the first guy I'd bother voting for since Reagan. Yeah, I know Reagan was what he was, but it he was the best choice in a bad time. I really like Chris Rock, very few comedians use the medium for social and political commentary anymore, and he's a funny mother fucker. Heroes from history would include Da Vinci, Rubens, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson, Orson Wells, Thomas Edison (I live in Edison, NJ and the site of his Menlo Park lab is about 5 miles from my house), Miles Davis, Lenny Bruce, Andy Warhol, Henri Matisse, Groucho Marx, Calder, Duchamp, Miro, The Beatles, Elvis. Jack Kirby, Harvey Kurtzman, Wallace Wood, guys like that in comics. 3. How the hell did you come up with the idea for Rat Bastard? It was really just one of many characters I had tucked away in piles of sketch books. My soon-to-be partner Tim Bird was leafing through my scribbles and came across it and convinced me to work up the character. Before I knew it we were working 6 days a week on it. 4. Toxic Hell or Daily Queen? My life? Work? The state of humanity? Not sure I understand the question but I'll offer this — a little of both. On the whole, my days are more fun than most people's. I'd bet one of my Wednesdays is better than most people's Friday nights. Somebody once told me that I must've been born with a horse shoe up my ass. I guess that means luck and I'd hafta agree. I really enjoy being an illustrator. I get to travel, meet all kinds of people and work in a field that I'm passionate about. Toxic Hell, maybe because I tend to have a little too much fun. 5. I heard this rumor that you did a lot of "hanging out with Jack Daniels" at The Expo/SPX. Is it true? Some fans stopped by and gave us a bottle of Jack at 11 am. I'm more of a vodka guy, but anything with alcohol in it is good. Besides, SPX is not known for its sold out crowds. Most of the of the con I spent hanging around with fellow artists. 6. Who would you rather have as a girlfriend: Jakita from Planetary, Trinity from The Matrix, or She-Ra Princess of Power? As long as they're cute and smell good, I'd give 'em each a try. 7. Are you the man behind the Shoposauraus (etc, etc, etc) T-shirts? Yeah, Saurus was like another life. It happened back in the late 80s. It was a very lucrative endeavor, but really had nothing to do with what I wanted to do with my career. It was like a glorified Hallmark card. One in 10 Americans bought either a T-shirt, beach towel, coffee mug or something with Saurus on it back then. I think making money in America is rather simple prospect, it's also boring if you're not doing something you love. 8. In High School — Captain of the Football Team or Trenchcoat Mafia? I played a lotta hockey, basketball and tennis in my teens. But I didn't like the jocks, they were meatheads. I spent a lotta time in the art dept. of my high school, but didn't I hang out exclusively with the creative types, either. Mostly I gravitated to what can only be described as "hot water kids". I was always in trouble in school. I don't really know how I managed to graduate. The term Trenchcoat Mafia sounds so pathetic. I don't get those kids. I can't understand why anybody would walk around in 80 degree weather in a black trench coat — it just broadcasts what a losers they are. 9. In your opinion whose comics (not yours) kick ass and take names? Will Eisner is the model of comic creator. I mentioned the late Jack Kirby earlier. There's the usual list of guys like Moore, Miller, Gaiman who are head and shoulders above the crowd in popular comics. I've always been influenced by Mort Drucker from Mad magazine. Mobius, Bernie Wrightson, these are my teachers I guess. I only had two really good teachers in art school. Then there's those who are putting out works that I can never pass up: Mike Mignola, Charles Burns, Kaz, Glenn L. Barr, Geof Darrow, Mike Allred, Evan Dorkin, Dave Lapham, Shannon Wheeler. I don't see much going on in mainstream comics that blows my hair back. 10. If you were named the God of Comics and could do anything to change the industry, what would it be? That's got to be the shittiest god to be. I mean, the comic industry is pathetic — it's run by nerds. What would that make me — The Nerd God? No thanks. Well, maybe if I had the power, I'd drive all the nerds from the temple (sticking with god type metaphors). Then I'd turn water into wine and we'd all dance around in our underpants. Sadly, barring divine intervention, I don't see that the comic industry is worth saving. The medium is wonderful, don't get me wrong. But look at the jackasses at comic conventions. Look at what sells. Look at the shop owners who never attend conventions and don't have a clue what's out there. 11. When can I expect to see Rat Bastard on the cover of Wizard? (wink, wink) Never, if I have anything to say about it. Why would I wanna be on the cover of what should really be titled Nerd Fest Monthly? Wizard doesn't get Rat Bastard, and after looking at their mag and being in this industry for a few years, I can totally understand why Wizard doesn't write about us. They like the taste of Rob Liefeld's dick too much. The stuff that they promote is just comical; in a sad way, it is the funniest publication in comics. I like the fact that Bob Burden's Mystery Men got made without any help from the likes of Wizard magazine. Back in January, an executive with Newline Cinema told Wizard owner Gareb Shamus they better start writing about us. He stared blankly. We're in the process of bringing Rat Bastard to animation, it's a natural progression, albeit not a priority. Being written about in Wizard only equates to possible comic sales. We never got into comics to really make money. We wanted to have fun. We won't kiss anybody's ass to sell books. 12. If you were named President of the National Endowment for the Arts, what would you blow the budget on? Guns and missiles. I would ask the president to round up all the deadbeat grifter "artists" and put them in the army. Why do some artists think they are entitled to our tax dollars so they can create? I understand we need art. But nobody ever gave me anything, like most hard working Americans, I made my own bones. We have people with learning disabilities, homeless families, an incredibly bad education system, people with no health benefits. Why are we giving money to smug, clove smoking art fags? 13. The coolest thing about doing comics is? I love the conventions. I get to meet the people whose books I enjoy. They have become dear friends. I like going to all the cities and meeting fans — they are incredibly generous. It's a pleasure to be appreciated for doing what I would easily do for my own amusement or enjoyment. I guess it's like being a musician or a ballplayer. Comics is different from other forms of illustration or graphic design in that there is a fan base. We walked into a bar the other night in NYC and somebody yelled out "Hey, it's the Huja Brothers", Tim and I were a little surprised. But there are fans everywhere who've met us at conventions or spotted us being interviewed on MTV or magazines. I know I make fun of the crowds at the cons and some of the other artists, but for every 10 douche bags, there's one really interesting fan or artist. I'm truly blessed. |
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